Capped mRNA Degradation Intermediates Accumulate in the Yeast spb8-2 Mutant

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Abstract
MRNA in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae is primarily degraded through a pathway that is stimulated by removal of the mRNA cap structure. Here we report that a mutation in the SPB8(YJL124c) gene, initially identified as a suppressor mutation of a poly(A)-binding protein (PAB1) gene deletion, stabilizes the mRNA cap structure. Specifically, we find that the spb8-2 mutation results in the accumulation of capped, poly(A)-deficient mRNAs. The presence of this mutation also allows for the detection of mRNA species trimmed from the 3′ end. These data show that this Sm-like protein family member is involved in the process of mRNA decapping, and they provide an example of 3′-5′ mRNA degradation intermediates in yeast.